"Don't feel bad for me, I want you to know that deep in the side of my heart, I will feel so glad to go."

- The Smiths

"Asleep"

"Run, little hero. But you can't hide."

Nico leaned against the wall, clutching his stomach. A wound promptly seeped trough his fingers, and the metallic tang of blood filled the air like a dense fog.

"What do you WANT from me?!" Nico cried.

The hissing, raspy voice laughed, chilling Nico to the bone.

Panting, he sped his way through... what was this? A cave? He couldn't be certain.

Rounding a tight corner, Nico found a small passageway, barely big enough for him to pass through.

Clutching his side, he pressed onwards. The cavern was so tight, he could hardly breathe, and the air seemed to include an acidic quality. Coughing, he looked ahead and noticed that there was a fiery light flickering in the distance. He could smell something like rotten eggs emanating from the nearby cracks that laced through the passage as he got closer to the jagged exit. A sickening, uneasy feeling began to spread through Nico's body. He felt as if he had experienced something like this before. His instincts screamed:

DANGER! DANGER!

Just before he approached the makeshift door, a sudden ringing noise began to permeate the air. The babel was so intense that it brought Nico to his knees, shrieking in pain.

In a matter of seconds, the din grew even louder. Nico thought that his head would split. As one last attempt to reach the door, he mustered all of his strength and raised his hand towards the crevice. He managed to open one of his eyes, peering at the gap. Suddenly, a great thundering spread throughout the ground, causing Nico to collapse again. The next time he glanced up, the fissure was gone.

'Wh...what? That... No. It can't be. It's not possible.' He thought frantically.

He began to panic, hyperventilating until he though he would pass out from asphyxiation.

The rasping voice from earlier began to laugh coldly all around him. The pounding in head escalated to a breaking point.

The walls began to press in on him, closing the already limited amount of space in the cavern. Trembling in fear, Nico slammed his palms against the serrated stones surrounding him, struggling against the strain of the walls.

'What's happening?' he cried.

The sinister voice returned.

"Where are your friends now, Son of Hades?" It cackled menacingly.

A coldness filled the air with such intensity, Nico though he felt the back of his teeth meld together.

The laughter of the unseen entity echoed off the walls, while Nico screamed for help that would never come.

Then the world went black.

It had been a pretty normal night for Percy. He had dinner with the Seven, took Annabeth on a nice walk through the stables.

Life was good.

Once he and Annabeth had talked for a little while, seeing that it was easily ten o'clock, they both decided to hit the hay. They both parted ways a they headed towards their quarters to get some well needed rest.

However, like any person who has gone through Tartarus (which there aren't very many of), Percy often found it hard to fall asleep. Not because he wasn't tired. He just found it somehow unappealing.

Thus, Percy got up to get a drink. Water always seemed to calm his thoughts.

Quietly opening his door, Percy padded towards the kitchen upstairs.

Ambling along, Percy glanced at the different names pointed hastily on the bedroom doors. His dyslexia was so bad, he could hardly read the them. "Hazel" looked like "lzaeH", and "Jason" looked like "naJos" He didn't mind, though. He felt relieved that he could even tell what their names were without needing to read them.

Once his thirst was quenched, Percy threaded lightly out of the kitchen.

Shuffling back to his bedroom, Percy suddenly heard a noise coming from a room down the hall. Knowing that their shouldn't have been anyone awake at this ungodly hour, he stopped in his tracks. Pausing, he held his breath,listening for any other sign of movement.

Leo had tried to make every room sound proof, but nothing fooled Percy. He might not have been the smartest demigod, but his senses were heightened, due to his time at the Wolf House. Hearing nothing but the continuous hum of the engine, he shrugged, continuing his journey.

As he passed the door that the noise had come from, Percy tensed. He put his ear against the smooth wooden panel, listening. A rustling sound came from inside, followed by a thud.

Percy narrowed his eyes. Something was definitely in there.

Reaching for the handle, he suddenly heard a blood curdling scream transpire from the room. Taken aback, Percy lost his grip on the doorknob . He glanced up to read the name painted on the door. It read "ciNo", which he translated as "Nico".

Percy's heart felt like it had been dipped into ice water. Had something gotten into the room? Or was it something else?

His mind reeling, Percy gripped the door handle once more. However, when he tried to turn it, it stuck in place.

On the verge of panicking, Percy tried to open it again. No luck. He could have sworn that it was unlocked before he heard the scream. Besides, he would have heard a click.

Frowning, a thought struck him.

'The doors don't even have locks,' he realized.

Not taking "no" for an answer, Percy took a few steps back, and slammed his heel into the door, causing it to burst open with a loud BANG!

He looked around the room for any sign of danger, and finding nothing. Glancing over at the single bed in the room, he saw Nico thrashing in the bed.

"Nico!" Percy exclaimed. Rushing over to the bed, he tried to get Nico to calm down.

"NO!" Nico cried. "STOP! PLEASE!"

His fists were clutching the sheets so tightly, Percy thought for a moment that he would rip the them. His arms were flailing, swinging at something that he couldn't see.

As he got closer, Percy realized that Nico's eyes were closed shut.

"Is he...having a nightmare?' Percy thought.

Thinking of ways to calm him down, Percy grabbed hold of Nico's shoulders and tried to shake him awake. However, this only resulted more struggling and writhing from the younger boy, who was screaming in terror for the entire incident.

"Nico!" Percy shouted. "It's okay! It's all in your head! You're safe."

After a few more seconds of tossing and turning, Nico finally jolted awake, clutching his chest. Percy noticed that his cheeks were wet with tears. Shivering, Nico acknowledged the older boy in front of him.

"P...Percy? What are you doing here?" he asked.

Percy explained that he had heard Nico screaming when he was walking down the hallway, and how he had tried to open the door but it wouldn't open, which resulted in Nico glancing worriedly at the previously "locked" door.

"I...I'm sorry for putting you through this," Nico rasped mournfully. "I didn't want to be a burden..."

Percy raised his eyebrows. "A burden? Nico, you had to go through Tartarus alone. I can't think of one person who wouldn't be a little messed up after that. If I hadn't gone through Tartarus without Annabeth... Well, I don't know where I'd be. Dead, probably."

Nico nodded just the slightest bit. He had stopped crying once he woke up, but the tears still stained his face.

After a few moments, the stillness in the room was interrupted by Nico's slightly quivering voice.

"It... wasn't about Tartarus," he stated.

Percy's eyes widened. "Really? But I was sure that-"

"I mean", Nico replied, "It wasn't exactly like it, you know? I got a sick feeling in my stomach while I was in the dream, kind of like déjà vu, but I couldn't really tell where I was. Everything was just so dark..." He shuddered.

Silence fell across the room. Only the drone of the oars could be heard.

Finally, Percy spoke up.

"Do you... want to talk about it? It might help relieve some of the apprehension."

Nico shook his head. "I... I don't think can bring myself to..."

Percy raised his hands in a "back off" gesture. "No, no, it's okay. I don't want to push you. Just..."

He glanced up at Nico. The younger demigod was still shivering from his night terror. Percy couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy towards him. He'd had nightmares before, but... nothing this intense. No wonder the guy rarely slept.

Percy set his hands in his lap. "...Be careful, okay? You know you can always come and talk to me or Annabeth about these things, right?"

Nico nodded, fiddling with his hand, which appeared to have a recent scratch on its palm. "Yeah. I... I guess so."

Percy sighed. He never really saw Nico for what he was; a kid. With his backround, he had been forced to grow up too quickly, never having any time for just being young. Since his sisters' death, he had become more distant from others, not willing to open up.

. The zany and bubbly light that had once flourished inside of him was squandered.

Percy stood up to leave. "Well, erm... I guess I'll... go now."

Nico glanced up from the floorboards, meeting Percy's eyes. The moonlight shining in from the window reflected in his irises, causing them to look a lighter shade of brown than usual. Percy thought Nico's eyes portrayed... longing?

'Must be a trick of the light," he thought hastily.

Nico nodded slightly. "Yeah... you can, if you want to."

Walking towards the door, Percy looked back at Nico getting comfortable in his bed, hearing him sigh.

"Hey, Nico?" he asked.

The younger boy lifted his head from underneath the covers. "Hmm?"

Percy leaned on the door frame, running his fingers through his already messy hair.

"Um... would you... could I stay in here with you? To make sure you don't have my more night terrors?"

Nico frowned slightly, contemplating the request. Finally, he glanced at Percy and nodded his head.

Smiling nervously, Percy approached the bed. He made himself as comfortable as he could on the very foot of the mattress. Nico kindly offered him his other pillow, which Percy accepted.

Once Percy shifted into a more suitable position, he wrapped his arms around the pillow and rested his cheek against the cool fabric. He breathed in deep, and he realized that the pillow smelled like Nico. It smelled a little like pine, with accents of smoke woven in between.

Sighing contentedly, Percy closed his eyes. "G'night, Nico"

"Good night, Percy."

After a few moments of silence, he could hear Nico exhale.

Thanks," he whispered.

Percy smiled. "No problem, little cousin."

Nico didn't have any more any more nightmares that night. However, when Percy woke up, he found that the younger boy had stolen the extra pillow he had given him earlier.

Percy watched the younger demigods' chest rise and fall rhythmically.

Grinning, he rolled over onto his side.

"Glad to help."